Efforts are being made to research and develop, as a next generation device technique, flexible devices in which a thin film device, such as a TFT (thin film transistor) and an electroluminescence device, is formed on a flexible substrate, such as a plastic substrate, instead of on a glass substrate or the like. One of significant features of the plastic substrate is that it is thin and flexible, compared to the glass substrate. Thus, the transportation of the substrate is a significant technical challenge in the device fabrication. Among various techniques developed as solutions to this challenge, a technique in which a plastic substrate is transported with the plastic substrate attached to a support substrate, such as a glass substrate which is thick and not easily bent, is expected to be the most promising technique, since having a significant advantage that the same existing device as used for the support substrate can be used.
For example, Patent Document 1 discloses as one of the techniques for manufacturing a display device made of a flexible substrate such as a plastic substrate, a jig for substrate transportation which is for transporting a substrate of a liquid crystal display element to a next process, with the substrate supported on a surface of the jig, and which is provided with an adhesive material layer on the support body whose adhesive power for holding the substrate attached to the surface of the jig is maintained almost constant despite repeated use. Patent Document 1 further discloses a technique for manufacturing a liquid crystal display element in which processes for forming a liquid crystal display element are sequentially performed with respect to the substrate adhering to the jig for substrate transportation, and after a predetermined process, the substrate is removed from the jig for substrate transportation, and the jig for substrate transportation is reused thereafter for adhesion of another substrate. Patent Document 1 mentions that according to the above technique, a thin plate-like glass substrate, a plastic substrate or the like is attached to the jig for substrate transportation, and is transported to a next fabrication process of the liquid crystal display element, and therefore that it is possible to fabricate a liquid crystal display element whose substrate is made of a material that does not have strength or rigidity when used alone, by utilizing the same manufacturing line designed for a conventional liquid crystal display element whose substrate is made of glass. Further, Patent Document 1 mentions that the above jig can be repeatedly used, and therefore that it is possible to significantly reduce the fabrication cost of the liquid crystal display element, compared to a disposal jig.